Scene Magazine - November/December 2010 by Scene Magazine

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2010

ANNIVERSARY ISSUE

ONE YEAR ON THE SCENE

BATON ROUGE GOES BIG TIME

GARY SINISE

SOUND SPEED:

MUSE

BEFORE THE SCENE

AND

FLORENCE + THE MACHINE

MIGNON FAGET ART BY DESIGN

TRUE BLOOD’S

ALEXANDER

SKARSGÅRD SINKS HIS FANGS INTO BATTLE

PLUS

VOL. 1, ISSUE 9 | November/December 2010

I am very proud to say this is our one-year anniversary issue and we have come a long way. The explosion of entertainment in Louisiana has given us an opportunity and we are pleased that our fans have responded so overwhelmingly to each issue, Scene Weekly and the website.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Kevin Barraco

EDITOR’S LETTER With so much production filming in Baton Rouge, chose to shine a spotlight on it and mega-budget films such as Battleship and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn are now in production. Among those studio pictures we also point out the success of independent features such as those projects produced with Unlimited Production Services. The Scene Team worked hard to find our cover this issue, but we felt a bit glamoured by True Blood vampire Alexander Skarsgård, who also stars in Peter Berg’s Battleship, currently filming at Raleigh Studios Baton Rouge. As our end of the year issue, I want to thank all of our advertisers and supporters. We are excited

to grow into the next year and expand our publication. Our website traffic has skyrocketed as national publications continue to source us and celebrities send their fans to read their interviews at w w w. scen el o u i s iana .co m. Almost two months ago, we launched Scene Weekly to thousands of subscribers. If you want to be a member please visit our website today and subscribe to receive it and the print edition of Scene. Stay tuned. You really haven’t seen anything yet!

KEVIN BARRACO EDITOR-IN-CHIEF editor@scenelouisiana.com

CREATIVE DIRECTOR Erin Theriot HEAD WRITER Micah Haley SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Marcie Dickson EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT Danielle Tabary SALES Jon Bajon, Cyndi Wiseman CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Ashley Merlin, Scott Myers, Alan Marksfield, Jason Kruppa, Peter Forest, Cook Allender, Neil Johnson, Josephine Sacabo GRAPHIC ARTIST Burton Chatelain, Jr. FASHION STYLIST John Delgadillo CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AJ Buckley, Arthur Vandelay, Ben Adams, Brittney Franklin, Chris Jay, Greg Milneck, Sherri McConnell, David Draper Scene Magazine At Raleigh Studios Baton Rouge 10000 Celtic Drive Suite 201 Baton Rouge, LA 70809 225-361-0701 At Second Line Stages 800 Richard St. Suite 222 New Orleans, LA 70130 504-224-2221 info@scenelouisiana.com www.scenelouisiana.com Published By Louisiana Entertainment Publishers LLC Display Advertising: Call Louisiana Entertainment Publishers for a current rate card or visit www.scenelouisiana.com All submitted materials become the property of Louisiana Entertainment Publishers LLC. For subscriptions or more information visit our website www.scenelouisiana.com Copyright @ 2010 Louisiana Entertainment Publishers. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be used for solicitation or copied by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording by any information storage or retrieval system, without the express written permission of the publisher.

4 | November/December 2010

CONTENTS ON THE COVER

Alexander Skarsgård ABOVE THE LINE

Pump Up the Volume

BEHIND THE SCENES

Hear from cast and crew and take a look behind the Scenes

BEFORE THE SCENE

A Conversation with Gary Sinise

PRODUCER’S CORNER Unlimited Films To Die For

LAST LOOKS

Freelance - Local Talent Lance Nichols

MUSIC / SOUND SPEED Muse Florence + The Machine

FASHION / THE RED CARPET The Fashion Scene Mignon Faget - Art by Design

SCENE EXTRAS

News, Resources, and Celebrities on the Scene

COLUMNS Today’s Scene 8 The Entertainment Economy by Sherri McConnell State of the Artist 20 Cheap Thrills by Micah Haley In the Mix 50 Hands on the New The Apple TV by Greg Milneck Good Seats 26 A Night of Film Lovers by Chris Jay Crew Up 28 Entertainment Partners in Growth by Ben Adams

THE UNSCENE

60 www.scenelouisiana.com | 5

TODAY’S SCENE

THE ENTERTAINMENT

ECONOMY by Sherri McConnell,

Executive Director, Louisiana Entertainment

writer in the Economic Development Journal commented late last year that the “role of government should not be one that dispenses corporate welfare to floating film companies drawn to the most financially attractive state platforms.” Additionally, he states, “There is yet to be a community in the U.S. that has successfully transitioned from using lower costs as an inducement to establishing a mature visual media infrastructure that will be attractive on an ongoing basis” and that incentives are “hardly a long-term strategy for economic development.” This mindset is not uncommon within the economic development community and raises a necessary question: are entertainment companies simply using Louisiana’s generous tax credit programs, only to leave when the check comes? Often enough, that is the case. With this in mind, Louisiana’s Office of Entertainment Industry Development (also known simply as Louisiana Entertainment) embarked on the path to creating a long-term strategy for cultivating a broad, self-sustaining, and permanent entertainment industry in Louisiana. This is our mission: to create and develop an indigenous entertainment industry and considerable progress has been made toward that goal. Louisiana’s first entertainment incentive program, created to stimulate the growth of the film industry, is a case study for the growth of indigenous business. In 2007, due to a lack of native vendors and businesses servicing the film industry, an average of only 21% of a film’s total budget could be spent inside Louisiana. By 2009, the landscape of vendors and support services had grown so dramatically, that statistic increased to 65%. Undeniably, Louisiana’s generous tax incentive programs have fueled this growth. The state’s significant investment, close to $700 million dollars in tax credits over eight years, has created $1.9 billion dollars of investment in Louisiana. The state is off to a good start, but most of these businesses are dependent on productions originating from outside of the state, whose primary reason for coming here is tax credits. What happens if the tax credits go away? It is imperative that we guarantee a return on the taxpayers’ investment by establishing a plan for long-term sustainability. Beginning in the late fall of 2009 and continuing through early spring, Louisiana Entertainment undertook a strategic planning process. The staff gave reign to their imaginations, envisioning a future in which Louisiana’s entertainment industry makes a significant and tangible contribution to the state’s overall economy. The picture painted included as much as $1 billion in annual impact to a Louisiana in which home-grown creative professionals, artists and musicians 8 | November/December 2010

clamor to stay or return permanently. Staff members also envisioned a state widely known as a successful incubator for creative industries. Successful development of a homegrown entertainment industry can be defined as Louisiana having a skilled workforce, state of the art facilities and top-tier educational programs that not only draw the industry here, but, more importantly, grow its native talent into entrepreneurs and industry professionals. The team at Louisiana Entertainment concluded that, in order to achieve success, Louisiana needed to focus on developing two fundamental building blocks: intellectual infrastructure - the people and businesses developing the creative product - and capital infrastructure – the financial offering that can help bring the creative product to fruition and ultimately to market. Louisiana’s focus should be on developing and fostering native businesses and entrepreneurs, and, specifically, what can be called “content creators.” That is, the people who create entertaining content and the pipeline of services that surround them. It all starts with an idea, a song, a screenplay or an innovative vision for a video game. And therein lays the advantage for Louisiana. While financial incentives and industry-specific training could be implemented nearly anywhere, there are few, if any, places that match Louisiana’s unique creative culture. It is our inherent, preexisting, renewable resource. A foundation readymade. It can provide a pipeline of potential content creators to an industry that is fundamentally dependent on them. However, a gap exists between talented individuals and work-ready professionals that needs to be filled. The state must strengthen its education pipeline and develop programs that provide opportunities for creative Louisianans to become skilled content providers to the entertainment value stream. Louisiana’s tax credits have helped mitigate the risk for traditional investors who otherwise might be reluctant to finance entertainment production. But basic funding sources for filmmakers, digital media startups and other entertainment entrepreneurs are still missing in-state. Entertainment film funds, angel investors, venture capital and traditional banking relationships need to be established here to provide opportunities for businesses and content creators to develop their products and services. Without a community of investors, content creators cannot make a business of their art. We want to continue to attract out-of-state businesses to Louisiana to produce their creative product here. But dependence on it is not a good economic development strategy. The future of the Louisiana entertainment industry lies within its own creative talent. S

FILM |

UNLIMITED FILMS TO DIE FOR by Ben Adams

Diora Baird in action on the set of Transit

nly giants as big as Battleship and Breaking Dawn can cast a shadow large enough to hide the swell of independent film activity in Baton Rouge. After starting his career as an investor on films such as Mama, I Want to Sing! and A Good Man is Hard to Find, Greg Walker transitioned into producing films. Along with Bobby Ranghelov and Nick Thurlow of Louisiana Media Productions, Walker is partnering with companies such as After Dark Films, Silver Pictures and Gold Circle Films to produce an ambitious slate of projects in Baton Rouge. With nine projects completed for the year and another four scheduled to shoot this month, Walker’s Unlimited Production Services has become an economic engine, churning out back to back films that are rapidly growing the city’s crew base. Not only is the number of projects impressive, but so is the content. While many of Unlimited’s projects are modestly budgeted, they boast tremendous casts. Flypaper stars Patrick Dempsey, Ashley Judd, Tim Blake Nelson and Jeffrey Tambor. The Ledge brought Terrence Howard, Liv Tyler and Patrick Wilson to Baton Rouge. “We also signed another five-picture deal with Joel Silver,” says Walker. “We started [the deal] with Transit, our first of five action movies, which are in the four to five million dollar range.” Transit stars Jim Caviezel as a father recently released from prison that must protect his family against a gang led by True Blood’s James Frain. “And we’re starting Dragon Eyes, which is the second picture in that five picture deal.” Courtney Solomon of After Dark Films is also producing the slate of action projects, which will be released under the “Actionfest” 10 | November/December 2010

photos by Cook Allender/courtesy of After Dark Films

banner, which parallels After Dark’s well-known “Horrorfest: 8 Films to Die For” brand. While the films are targeted at genre audiences, they are beautifully shot and the scripts selected are surprisingly good. “They’re good pictures,” says Walker. “Everyone’s working hard, we have such a good crew. And they’ve all worked together now for a year and a half. We’re just keeping people busy.” The steady flow of production is a track record that is helping Unlimited land projects that might be shot in other states, such as Georgia, which has a film incentive very similar to Louisiana’s. One of those projects is Gold Circle Films’ The Haunting in Georgia. Walker says that his group and Gold Circle were quickly comfortable with each other. “Between our trucks and everything we’ve got, our office space and our cameras, it’s easy for them. I think they just saw that we are on the ground,” he says. “We also have a tax credit fund and are able to finance tax credits, and I think that was a big piece of it.” With 2011 a couple of months away, Unlimited is expecting to finish several projects before the end of the year. “We start The Cellar this year, which is the first of our next eight Horrorfest movies, Woman Thou Art Loosed 2, which is a T.D. Jakes movie we’re supposed to shoot the day after Thanksgiving, We’re also starting Dragon Eyes that same day,” says Walker. “ And we start Universal Soldier 4 the first quarter of next year.” Look for updates and contact information on these and other independent films shooting in Baton Rouge in the Production Updates section of Scene Weekly. S

BEHIND THE

SCENES S

TRANSIT The first of five After Dark Originals, director Antonio Negret pits a family led by Passion of the Christ’s Jim Caviezel against a gang of thugs led by True Blood’s James Frain in Transit. All photos are by Cook Allender, courtesy of After Dark Films.

Right: a vehicle explodes on the set of Transit in Baton Rouge. Below: Crews set up a shot with a crashed car.

Jim Caviezel leads Sterling Knight by the hand in Transit

“We hung out with some alligators at Alligator Bayou, which was cool. Got to see people sit on an alligator and this guy feeding them a chicken. I was like, ‘You are really, really not…smart. But I admire your stupidity.’ I love that stuff! It’s amazing. Being able to see some gators made everything worthwhile.”

- DIORA BAIRD

Right: James Frain wields a machete in Transit. Bottom: Crews set up a shot.

“Crawling through the swamp and getting bruises, bloody, squibs going off…we shot up a whole house, and thank God they let us be in it! I would have just been so upset if they had not let me be in there when sixty squibs went off. Stuff was flying from the ceiling! Chaos. That’s the great thing about being an actor: you get to do some ridiculous, dangerous stuff, in as much of a controlled environment as possible and get paid for it.”

- STERLING KNIGHT MORE BEHIND THE SCENES 12 | November/December 2010

FILM |

TRESPASS Starring Nicolas Cage, Nicole Kidman, Jordana Spiro, Ben Mendelsohn and Liana Liberato, Trespass shot primarily in a house constructed at the Shreveport Convention Center. Directed by Joel Schumacher, Kidman and Cage play a husband and wife taken hostage by four brutal criminals seeking a big score. Complications ensue amid the unexpected discovery of betrayal and deception. Trespass brings the Oscar-winning actors together for the first time.

Right- Liana Liberato and Ben Mendelsohn Middle- 10,000 square foot, two-story home built in an exhibit hall at the Shreveport Convention Center

“We knew we had a big undertaking with this set. Joel wanted to show continuous action with actors, so our interior set is an open plan, twostory house designed to allow the camera to see across the home and even into the second floor balcony. There is a line in the script, where Cage’s characters says, ‘We don’t own the house, the house owns us.’ This is where the set production theme originated, so the home had to be big, beautiful and consume the people living in it.”

caption

- NATHAN AMONDSON, PRODUCTION DESIGNER

Below- Nicole Kidman and Nicolas Cage

“It’s a very modern house. What was surprising to me about it was how open it was. It’s all just one huge open space. I was surprised to see that, because almost the whole script takes place inside this one house. I thought it would be more chopped up to give us more separated locations. It interested me how Joel [Schumacher] would get mileage out of this one location, and he has done that with the way he moves the camera. The camera is always moving. There’s always three cameras in every scene, always handheld or Steadicam, so they are constantly moving around you. And what’s nice about that is it pulls the cast and the crew together in a way that we all have to operate as this one unit. That’s always exciting and fun.” All photos by Alan Marksfield, copyright 2010 Millennium Films

14 | November/December 2010

- JORDANA SPIRO

BEFORE THE SCENE WITH GARY SINISE by AJ Buckley

Before the Scene is where we all start. In a small town with our families. In front of a mirror with our friends. The days spent sleeping on a couch. The nights working at a bar. Living with the unknown and surrounded by uncertainty. It’s about the times that define us. It’s about the darkness just before the limelight. trying to find excuses for why you can’t get work and it’s usually all because of somebody else. It’s their fault all the time, and it’s not your fault, ever. Q: WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO BECOME AN ACTOR? A: I don’t think anything made me become an actor. There were circumstances that came about accidently where I just fell in love with it. That all goes back to high school when I did my first play. I’ll always remember that as being a really significant point. People ask me sometimes what the highlights are of the things I’ve done in my acting life. Right up there is the very first thing I did: the moment I discovered it. You can’t ever take for granted the newness of something like that. It happened when I was a sophomore in high school and I just sort of stumbled on it accidently, or, it accidently stumbled on me. This drama teacher came walking down the hallway and saw me looking pretty scruffy standing with some of the guys in my high school rock band. She turned around and did a double-take, and said, “I’m directing West Side Story and you look perfect for the gang members so come and audition.” So I went in and thought that would be funny to audition for a play but then when I was hanging outside of the audition wondering, “What is an audition, what do you do?” and “I don’t know what this is but I’ll go and see what it is.” I saw all these pretty girls going into the audition and thought, “Well, I’m going to go in and see what this is about.” And then I ended up auditioning. I had no idea what I was doing, I was stumbling through [it] and trying to read it and I didn’t know what I was doing but I was cracking everybody up and everyone was laughing. She cast me in the show and I went to rehearsals and the whole thing began for me right there. And by the end of the show, I just cried like a baby when it was over. It had touched me so much. I discovered this brand new thing and that was really important.

Q: WHAT KEPT YOU FROM WALKING AWAY? A: My theater company. I stayed in Hollywood for about a year in a half to try to get some jobs in the late ‘70s. My theater company was still growing and changing in Chicago, so I went back. I was a founder of it, but at that time, I was not running it. I went back and within a year, I became [its] artistic director. Then I started directing and directed some plays that started getting attention and the theater company started to get attention when we started taking our plays to New York and we just kept growing. So, having the solid family of theater peers in Chicago kept me, and many others, going through the time when you question everything.

Q: WHAT WAS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR ABOUT ACTING? A: That I would be terrible. Embarrass myself and everyone around me. And because of that, it makes you work harder, no matter what; you always have that fear of just being insufficient for what you’re supposed to be doing. Even now I never take it for granted that I’m going to be just able to go out there and do it, I always have to make sure I know where I’m going. It makes you work a little harder when you’re a little fearful of being bad.

Q: WHAT WERE YOU DOING THE MORNING BEFORE THAT ONE AUDITION THAT CHANGED YOUR LIFE? A: I would say the Forrest Gump audition [was] a career changing moment because that movie was such a popular movie and such a success. But you know, there has been a ton of those kinds of moments, where things were new and something changed and you just all of a sudden you find yourself here and you make a decision and something happens.

Q: WHAT WAS YOUR LOWEST POINT, WHERE MAYBE YOU THOUGHT, “I DON’T KNOW IF THIS IS RIGHT FOR ME”? A: I had a little bit of a different path, having started a theater company that was actually progressing and holding itself together because of the personalities and the people that were involved in it in Chicago. There was this sense of community and strength around it. Now were there low points during that time? Yes, there were. There were moments where I didn’t think the theater company was going to work and there were moments where I took a break from the theater, tried to come out to Hollywood back in the late ‘70s and make it in the movies and couldn’t get an audition to save my life, couldn’t get an agent. It was very difficult to be seen when you had no credentials, no name, no education because I didn’t go to college and have a theater background. All I had was this theater company that I started with my pals and at that time, nobody knew who we were. Now it’s a very well known theater company, but at that time nobody knew who we were. We were a very local, small company in Chicago and it wasn’t well known. At that point, I remember being in Hollywood and getting very bitter about stuff. When you’re young and can’t get anything going, you just start thinking everything’s terrible. You start 16 | November/December 2010

Q: WHO WAS YOUR CLOSEST ALLY? A: My wife, Moira. I have dear friends who were allies but we would always disagree creatively. It was a hotbed of exciting creative, electric energy that was always in conflict with itself because people wanted to go this way with it or go that way. So, we were constantly butting heads, which made us better all the time. The fighting with each other and the debating, the challenging…[it] made us all better actors. But through all those times of questioning my leadership of the company and whether I was trying to take [it] in the right way. Through all of that, my wife Moira, was always solid in my corner. Whenever I would get to feeling a lack of confidence in what I was trying to do, she was always very solid. We went through our times in the relationship when we questioned, but through the strong times, the clear times in our relationship, she was always my strongest ally.

Q: IS THERE ONE TIME IN PARTICULAR THAT STANDS OUT? A: It’s hard for me to remember what I was doing the morning I auditioned for Forrest Gump, but I do remember this: it was a Vietnam veteran… I have Vietnam veterans in my family and I had been very, very active with Vietnam veterans groups throughout the ‘80s, so when I read it, I really wanted to play the part. I knew what to do with it. I knew guys like that and I thought I could do it. I auditioned for it and then I called my agent and I asked, “What happened?” They were like, “Well, they are going to think about it, they auditioned a lot of people, they are not sure which way they are going to go.” So I said okay, well, that’s the way of the world here in Hollywood. [At that point], I had done Of Mice and Men, and it was a success. Not a box office success, but critically it did well and some directors around town were interested in working with me. In fact, there were three movies I was up for at that time. One, I did a screen test for and it was between me and another guy, the other one I was just very close to it, and I just forgot about Forrest Gump.

About three weeks later, my manager called and said, “Looks like you might get Forrest Gump.” I am not going to name the other movies, but they were huge disappointments, real failures. But I would have taken them had I got them. And luckily, Forrest Gump came along and I got to do that and that was a good thing. Q: WHAT WERE THE WORDS THAT KEPT YOU GOING? A: I have always been the kind of person that doesn’t wait around. I don’t know why that is. I go back to the second and third grade and I was the kid in the neighborhood that would get the other kids together for the volleyball game or the baseball game. I was the kid that was the organizer. On the music front, I was always the guy that kind of led the band. So, I had this sort of do-it-yourself attitude about a lot of things. I think part of it came from an overcompensating for an inadequacy that I would feel, like I wasn’t good academically at school, so I would do other stuff. When I graduated from high school I started a theatre company and I was just always trying to compensate for what I felt were flaws on the education side. I got terrible grades straight from kindergarten to high school. I didn’t graduate with my class because I didn’t have enough credits, so I had to go back and take another semester to make up for stuff I didn’t do. So I was constantly trying to overcome these inadequate feelings by building stuff, and doing physical labor rather than talking. I think that attitude has gotten me through a lot of difficult stuff. Over the years, I have tried to make up for that stuff that I feel I may not have learned as I young person and I have learned to rely on those instincts a lot more, rely on the intuitive nature of what you are feeling a little bit more. You know, because now, I’ve been through it so many times, you learn how to get through it, you’ve done it before, you know how to get through it, you can get through it again. The more of those little battles that you win, the more confident you are in your abilities to get through those types of things. Q: WHAT WORDS WOULD YOU GIVE TO PEOPLE THAT ARE GOING THROUGH A TIME; DO YOU HAVE SOME WORDS INSPIRATION? A: Look. I go out and I do a lot of different types of things. I see a lot of people that don’t have a lot of stuff and are going through really difficult times in their lives. Yet they somehow over come them. You know, parents that lose a child in the war. A soldier who loses his limbs or his sight or has a brain injury, or kids that have lost a parent: these people are going through a really serious thing. Yet somehow, and I am constantly amazed, people get through these things in their lives, if you look at it and you listen to the stories from people that have faced tremendous obstacles in their lives and overcome them. There is truly a resiliency and strength in the human spirit and in what people can do. I know one guy who is amazing: his name is Story Musgrave. If you look at what he went through in his childhood and what he accomplished in his life… getting five PhDs, becoming an astronaut and a scientist, flying on the shuttle six times, repairing the Hubble telescope. There are some remarkable people out there and there are people that get through really serious things and I am always inspired by what folks get through. You may think there is no possible way they are going to get through it and then they do. They look back on it and they pass their stories on to new generations to give them hope and inspiration and that has happened for centuries. Those stories get passed down over and over and over and we learn from them and we say, “If they can get through that then maybe I can get through this.” Over the past six years, AJ has starred as Adam Ross on the hit TV show CSI:NY, soon to premiere in its new time slot, Friday nights at 9pm. Originally from Dublin, he has spent the past ten years in Los Angeles acting and writing. AJ is also currently writing and starring in the web series Ghostfacers for Warner Bros www.GhostFacers. com., and has the romantic comedy Christmas Mail opening this winter. Find out more at www.ajbuckley.net.

ON INSPIRATION:

I am constantly amazed — people that have faced tremendous obstacles in their lives and overcome them. There is truly a resiliency

and strength in the human spirit and in what people can do.

GARY SINISE www.scenelouisiana.com | 17

FILM |

FREELANCE by Brittney Franklin

Lance Nichols

laying dentist Larry Williams on HBO’s hit show Treme has been rewarding for actor Lance Nichols. “I cannot tell you how many women have stopped me on the street to say, ‘I love your character,’” noting that many mention Larry’s close relationship with his stepsons and their father. “It’s been really amazing because I was not expecting that kind of reaction,” he says. The role also reunited Nichols with Khandi Alexander, who plays his wife, LaDonna. “She’s a really cool lady,” he says of the veteran actress. The two have a lighthearted relationship on the set of Treme, having first met on the set of NewsRadio in 1996. Steeped in New Orleans culture, Nichols appreciates the devotion to authenticity exhibited by the creators of Treme. To illustrate the point, he recalls a scene in which Larry brings his stepsons to their grandmother’s house, and then neglects to speak to his mother-in-law after entering. “Anthony, dude, this will not fly,” he said to the episode’s director. “No way you walk into your mother-in-law’s house in the South and not speak to her.” After consulting with show creator Eric Overmyer, the scene was altered so that Larry acknowledged her presence. While filming a Katrina evacuation scene, Nichols offered another suggestion to maintain authenticity. “We were shooting out in Hahnville at a gas station and when we got to set, I’m looking at everybody and everybody’s face is bone dry,” he explains. He brought the issue up to the producer, saying, “I’m not trying to tell you how to do your job, but I actually evacuated. It was hot and humid. People need to be sweating.” Soon everyone was being sprayed with glycerin. To prepare for a dental procedure his character performs on Antoine Batiste, played by Wendell Pierce, he spent five hours observing and practicing at the LSU School of Dentistry. When

18 | November/December 2010

the day arrived, he asked actual dentists to watch the monitors to make sure he performed properly. “That’s who I want to fool,” he says, “The general public doesn’t care but if a dentist is watching that, I want them to think, ‘That dentist is a good actor.’” Nichols is looking forward to the second season of Treme, hoping the writers address Creole culture, LaDonna’s infidelity and whether or not Larry will confront Antoine on his absence in his own sons’ lives. “Wherever the show is going to go this season, I’m ready for it.” Nichols was recently in Lafayette shooting the Syfy Network original movie Weather Wars with director Toshko Chapkanov for Bullet Films. Starring Nichols, Stacy Keach and Jason London, the film tells the story of a scientist, played by Keach, who runs a government program researching how to use weather as a weapon. After funding for his climate experiment is pulled, he begins a war of his own. Nichols plays Senator Aldrich, a “proud, arrogant and pompous” politician who earns a place at the top of the scientist’s list of revenge. Enthusiastically praising the cast and crew, he says everyone brought their “A-game” to the set and worked together harmoniously. “Toshko is the most animated director I’ve ever worked with,” he says. “He knows what he wants, he trusts his actors and if he gets what he wants in one take, he’ll go, ‘I got it.’” With an efficient crew, the fifteen-day timespan for the shoot didn’t hinder production, even when on-the-spot changes had to be made. Some days they even finished early. Nichols credits his readiness for last-minute script changes to his training on Treme. “That’s how it is,” he says, “You get your material two days ahead of time.” Lance Nichols currently has many films in post-production, including The Mortician, Jeff Who Lives at Home, Blood Out, The Mechanic with Jason Statham and Warner Bros’ Green Lantern. Season two of Treme begins filming in November. S

STATE OF THE ARTIST

CHEAP THRILLS by Micah Haley

riter/directors Andrew Gurland and Huck Botko came to Louisiana from New York in the spring of 2009 with two films. Shot under less-than-descriptive working titles like Cotton, Stewie and Jar People, both films were a departure from the usual moderate and big budgeted projects local film professionals are used to working on. Both were shot for less than a million dollars. A little over a year later, the first film was released. On August 27, The Last Exorcism nearly took the top spot at the box office away from Takers, raking in over $20 million in its first weekend alone. The marketing for the second film, The Virginity Hit, caused a flood of calls to Scene Magazine’s Baton Rouge office over a billboard campaign that asked, “Still a Virgin?” Both films are unique takes on familiar concepts made for a price. Both are easily worth the price of admission. And both were not only shot, but set in Louisiana. While Andrew and Huck wrote the two films, directing duties on The Last Exorcism were relinquished to director Daniel Stamm. “Both movies kind of came together at the same time, and our goal was to get both movies made,” says Andrew. “We knew that Last Exorcism could get made without us, and we knew that Virginity Hit wouldn’t. So, it was kind of a no-brainer in that regard.” The surprise late-summer hit received not only a strong audience response, but also good reviews from critics, some of whom compared the character of Reverend Cotton Marcus to real-life evangelist and charlatan Marjoe Gortner, the subject of the Oscar-winning 1972 documentary film Marjoe. “I wouldn’t say that the character of Cotton was based on Marjoe,” says Andrew. “But certainly it affected us, for sure.” “For The Last Exorcism, we knew we were looking for some place in the South,” says Huck. “We’re two guys who don’t know the South very well and the script was written for Missouri. But we’d never been to Missouri. And we knew it was going to change once production actually happened. The same with The Virginity Hit. It was just strictly about [the fact that] we didn’t want it to be New York or L.A. or anywhere like that. We wanted it to be somewhere else where kids are having a good time. And obviously, kids have a pretty good time down there.” While rewritten for New Orleans, Huck and Andrew wanted The Virginity Hit to reflect a more general suburban American experience. “We were very cognizant of the fact that we didn’t want to turn it into a New Orleans movie like Benjamin Button where it was highlighting all the iconic New Orleans landscape,” says Huck. “Because the thing is, when you’re living in a place, you never really go to those places. It’s always a question of, where do kids really go, where do they really live, where do they really hang out. And that was the focus of a lot of our scouting.” Produced by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay, The Virginity Hit follows a group of lifelong teenage friends as one of them stumbles through attempts to lose his virginity. “We had our ideas written out, but once we got together with the kids, they understood that we were looking for them to put themselves into the movie, and then they ran with it,” says Huck. “They were creative kids, obviously very funny. They’re performers. For example, they went out and actually got releases signed for certain T-shirts that are in the movie, things that they loved.”

20 | November/December 2010

The Virginity Hit cast with producer Will Ferrell

photos courtesy of Sony

“We found them through casting directors,” says Andrew. “What we did that was more unique was that we just had the guys live in a house together, hang out and play video games and shoot home movies. We basically sent them to ‘friend camp’ where they just had to spend time and hang out with each other.” Allowing the young actors to bring their own tendencies to the table was an important part of the creative process. “Zack would say words like ‘B-hole’ and ‘d**khole.’ We maybe had a version of something like that in the script, but that wasn’t something that he really said. And, y’know, we’re not teenagers anymore. We’re kind of older gentlemen. So it was important that they embrace and embody themselves. That was totally something that we encouraged. And they were happy they could make it their own.” Shooting the low-budget film documentary style allowed Andrew and Huck a “run and gun” creative flexibility unheard of on most feature films. Recounting the shooting of one scene in Kenner, Huck says, “We had a very minimal crew, and in fact, we had Justin, the kid with the mustache, shooting it and we just took them off in the car and went to that field to improvise that scene. “So basically, they grab the bat, get in a fight, Matt starts chasing back around the field in the movie, and right at the end of that cut is when the police came! That was not [planned] at all. We were just trying to get them in the groove of things. And so, it was like a half hour that they talked to the cops. They were like ‘You guys are done. Get out of here.’” Andrew and Huck attribute the opportunity to make both movies to Will Ferrell and Adam McKay. “They put a film we made called Mail Order Wife on a list of theirs: fourteen movies you gotta see before you die,” says Huck. “Because they put it up on Funnyordie.com, we knew that they were champions of our work. So, we wanted to bring them a project that we could all work on together, and we told them about our idea for Virginity Hit and they really like it, and they helped us find the financing for it.” And about that billboard marketing campaign? “We were not really involved with any of the decisions regarding the marketing of the movie,” says Huck. “So, I can neither take credit or blame for the way that ‘Still a Virgin?’ affected people.” Andrew Gurland and Huck Botko are currently writing a remake of the 1981 film The Funhouse. “We’re doing it for Strike Entertainment, who also did The Last Exorcism,” says Huck. “It’s a remake of the Tobe Hooper [film] in 1980. In our version, we’re going to update it, and we’re going to do it in 3-D.” S

FILM |

PUMP UP THE VOLUME

by Micah Haley

ew Orleans was a natural fit. An old city with a history of and, over time, returned to New Orleans. Many of the films that did base hosting films, it was an internationally recognized brand in the capitol city were interested in locations on its periphery, such as with direct flights to Los Angeles. That, and the Cres- Nottoway Plantation or Angola. But now Baton Rouge has something more: Raleigh Studios at the cent City had a reputation as Celtic Media Centre. With seven a damn fine place to party. stages currently operational and New Orleans has always been another slated for construction, the film industry’s first love in it is Louisiana’s largest builtLouisiana, but a natural disaster for-production film stage in 2005 forced films like The facility. And largely because Guardian and Factory Girl north. of it, Baton Rouge is back. No stranger to studio films, The unusually fast ascent from Baton Rouge was considered, but small indies to tentpoles parallels ultimately deemed too close to the quick rise of Battleship star ground zero, and films evacuated Alexander Skarsgård. A year after as far north as possible. As a result, Katrina, the thirty-three year old Shreveport’s star grew bright. actor was a virtual unknown until “Baton Rouge had seen appearing in Treme creator David its share of big pictures,” Simon’s seven-episode war opus says Chris Stelly, the State of Generation Kill on HBO. With Louisiana’s director of film & Post-production suite at Digital FX in Baton Rouge South Louisiana’s recovery well television. “It started with Dukes of Hazzard. That was a really, really big production. Then on the underway, Skarsgård joined the cast of True Blood, HBO’s salacious take heels of that came The Reaping, which shot here during Katrina on vampire mythology. With True Blood heading into its fourth season, [and] they were able to continue to finish that production.” Skarsgård is well known to many as the pale-faced, pink-lipped Eric But in the wake of Katrina, Baton Rouge’s reputation became that of Northman. A vampire sheriff who runs a bar in Shreveport, Northman an independent film hub. With the exception of a few small but prolific is better known by the ladies for his sexual stoicism than his ability to production companies, the majority of film activity flocked to Shreveport pour Turbodog from a tap. Aboard Battleship, Skarsgård plays Stone  22 | November/December 2010

FILM |

ALEXANDER Skarsgård Special effects crew operate a mechanical head of an alien monster on the set of 51

Hopper, the older brother to Taylor Kitsch’s Alex Hopper. The military setting is a natural one for the Swedish-born actor, a veteran who worked as an anti-terrorism marine in the country of his birth. With Battleship, Skarsgård and co-star Taylor Kitsch are poised to be the newest members of Hollywood’s A-list of leading men. In addition to direct economic impact, titanic-sized projects bring with them a high profile that grows Louisiana’s international brand as a filming destination. As the world follows Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner’s every move, they will be on the streets of Baton Rouge. But they are certainly not the only projects in town. As big productions roll in, they join an unusual number of independent films produced through Baton Rouge-based production companies including Films in Motion, K2 Pictures and Unlimited Production Services, all of which are producing larger, more high profile films than just a few years ago. “It’s really is amazing to see how far people have come and how fast their companies have grown,” says Stelly. “A small startup company with a good, tight business plan can grow like that. And then they become fully self-sufficient, efficient machines.” The result is an impressive groundswell of volume in filming. “We’ve made nine movies this year already. Nine movies and we’ve got four more to make, which is just mind-boggling,” says producer Greg Walker of Unlimited Production Services. “We literally have twenty movies to deliver in the next two years, it’s crazy.” The lion share of Unlimited’s output is part of deals with After Dark Films and Silver Pictures, including Horrorfest flicks Seconds Apart and 51 and the first of five After Dark Originals, Transit, starring Jim Caviezel, Elizabeth Rohm, James Frain, Harold Perrineau and Diora Baird. The sustained expansion is creating demand for local labor, and Baton Rouge’s previously anemic crew base is quickly expanding. “Our last local crew was over 50% [from Baton Rouge] which was great. Two years ago it was 30%. We had 63% on one movie this year,” says Walker. “And we’re getting new, quality people here. People are moving here and staying here. The quality of the local crew has really gone up.” A testament to the local crew base, Unlimited will be shooting three films simultaneously in Baton Rouge this November. The biggest lesson to locals and onlookers alike is this: there’s no limit to Louisiana’s potential for growth. The surge of activity in Baton Rouge has only improved the reputations of New Orleans, Shreveport and Lafayette, who are all experiencing a sustained increase in filming and post-production. With four viable film hubs, Louisiana has a distinct advantage over other incentive states. “It’s wild, it’s crazy, it’s unbelievable,” says Stelly enthusiastically. “In 2010, the films that have wrapped this year will have exceeded the first five years of the program combined, from 2002-2006. The total films we are doing in 2010 will meet or exceed that number. We’re at over 120 applications to the program. You’ve got Disney back down in New Orleans with The Lucky One. You’ve got the stuff happening in Baton Rouge with Twilight and with Battleship. A lot is happening.” S 24 | November/December 2010

Battleship star Alexander Skarsgård

is a natural fit to play Naval officer Stone Hopper. Not only did the familiar True Blood face previously star as a marine in HBO’s Generation Kill, Skarsgård was an actual anti-terrorist marine in Sweden, the country of his birth.

GOOD SEATS

A NIGHT FOR FILM LOVERS by Chris Jay

n Saturday, September 25, legendary writer/director Joel Schumacher and Academy Award-winner Nicolas Cage joined guests at The Robinson Film Center in Shreveport for an evening of film and discussion benefitting the not-for-profit arts organization. The first rate filmmakers have been in Shreveport for months shooting the home invasion thriller Trespass for Nu Image/Millennium Films. Cage screened and discussed his directorial debut, 2002’s Sonny. The film stars James Franco as a young man who returns to his home in New Orleans after a military deployment in hopes of building a better life. Following an intermission during which Cage and Schumacher mingled with fans, Schumacher introduced 8MM, his edgy 1999 thriller starring Cage and Joaquin Phoenix. Following the screening of 8MM, Schumacher and Cage took questions from guests, whose questions were wide ranging. When asked to name their favorite film projects, Schumacher cited 8MM and 1993’s Falling Down starring Michael Douglas. Cage dodged the question with a smile, stating that “movies are like my children. I can’t say I have a favorite because the others will get jealous.” When asked about the remake of The Wicker Man, his 2006 film with writer/ director Neil LaBute, Cage jovially replied, “Of course we were in on the joke! You don’t make a film where you karate-chop Leelee Sobieski in the throat without knowing that there is an element of comedy there.” When asked if he enjoyed filming in Shreveport-Bossier City, Schumacher answered to applause, “I would make every movie here if I could.” Cage said that he also enjoyed living and working in Shreveport, but added that direct flights to Los Angeles from Shreveport Regional Airport would make the area more attractive as a filming destination. As the evening came to a close, Schumacher lingered to chat with fans, discussing everything from his big-screen adaptations of John

26 | November/December 2010

Alex Kent moderates a Q&A with Nicolas Cage and Joel Schumacher

Grisham’s novels to the new restoration of his iconic vampire film The Lost Boys. It was an incredible night for film lovers and succeeded in raising sorely needed funds for The Robinson Film Center, Northwest Louisiana’s only venue for independent, foreign and classic cinema. S

www.scenelouisiana.com | 27

CREW UP

ENTERTAINMENT PARTNERS IN GROWTH by Ben Adams

ith each passing year, the wall between the entertainment efforts of state officials, provide the predictability producer’s prefer. industries in Louisiana and Los Angeles continues to The result has been a steady increase in the volume of filmmaking. “It’s funny,” says Broussard. “When people from our California office crumble. In an effort to capture part of the pie, Los Anhave visited our Louisiana office, they’ve talked about how they have geles and New York-based companies, such as L.A.-based payroll run into more location shooting around town than they typically do in company Entertainment Partners (EP), began aggressively courting Los Angeles! And by helping to develop the production worker pool films traveling to Louisiana. and working with the local universities here we hope this will only Active on the West Coast since the late 1970s, EP opened an office in continue to grow in the future.” Louisiana in 2008 to best assist Broussard says that productions it was servicing Entertainment Partners is locally. While state law has now dedicated to developing changed to require that service the local industry by offering providers have an employee on specialized training on its the ground to qualify for film proprietary Movie Magic incentives, this was not the budgeting and scheduling case in 2008. Entertainment software, both essential tools for Partners saw a need and met it. film professionals. EP also offers Their first hire was Ryan the software for sale to film Broussard, a Louisiana native school students at discounted already familiar with the rates. “It’s been very rewarding local industry. By hiring a for us to be able to help nurture local, the company was able to hit the ground running, – RYAN BROUSSARD, the next generation of Louisiana filmmakers,” says Broussard. rather than waiting for a Los ENTERTAINMENT PARTNERS EP’s efforts to educate the Angeles-based professional next tide of film professionals to relocate and acclimate. have included a conference “It has been a huge benefit to have a local office where the production activity is centered,” Broussard at the University of New Orleans film school and sponsoring a says. “It’s very important for the local film industry to know we are production accounting training course at the New Orleans Video here in Louisiana to serve their needs. The local industry is very Access Center (NOVAC). The NOVAC program afforded locals close and it seems everyone knows who’s shooting what and where, a chance to immerse in the highly specialized world of production even when filming is being done in Shreveport and smaller towns.” accounting, including instruction by industry professionals Unlike other states with new or developing film incentives, the and specific advice on how to pursue work in the local industry. As any production accountant will tell you, labor accounts for Louisiana film tax credit system has grown over time, refining itself a significant portion of any film’s budget. Because Louisiana’s film over the program’s relatively lengthy tenure. This allows state officials incentives offer 35% back on all local labor in the form of a tax at Louisiana Entertainment to clearly communicate what types of credit, incoming films are heavily incentivised to hire local labor. S spending count towards the film tax credit. In contrast, other states have been less than clear about the requirements. Some have even changed the rules unexpectedly, making it much more difficult for the studios and For more information on Entertainment Partners, Movie Magic Scheduling and Budgeting and upcoming training courses, contact Ryan Broussard at independent projects to meet their production incentives requirements. rbroussard@entertainmentpartners.com. The consistency of Louisiana’s rules, along with the knowledge and

“IT HAS BEEN VERY REWARDING FOR US TO BE ABLE TO HELP NURTURE THE NEXT GENERATION OF LOUISIANA FILMMAKERS.”

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scene

2010 NEW ORLEANS FILM FESTIVAL

he 21st Annual New Orleans Film Festival turned out to be another crowd pleaser with record attendance and acclaimed films. Renowned filmmakers, such as Jake Scott, Taylor Hackford, D. A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus attended the anticipated screenings of their films, giving insightful information about the filmmaking process. For photos, interviews and more from the festival, visit www.scenelouisiana.com. S

Director Cameron Yates and Jeanette Maier, the Canal Street Madam

Anthony Mackie at the NOFF premiere of Night Catches Us

ACADIANA FILM FESTIVAL: NOVEMBER 11-14

he Acadiana Film Festival (AFF) explores the intersection between entertainment and technology, concentrating on the future of motion pictures. The festival provides a platform for independent filmmakers and musicians to present their original work, creating a forum that joins together artist and industry professionals while educating the public and promoting the entertainment

industry in Louisiana. Acadiana Film Festival is an international festival located primarily in downtown Lafayette with a few off site venues. Throughout the four day event, the festival hosts screenings, panels, workshops, seminars, live music, social and professional networking and parties. The majority of the events are free and open to the public. For more info, visit www.acadianafilm.org. S

MORE SCENE EXTRAS 30 | November/December 2010

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SCENE |

Moonbot’s William Joyce

photos by Neil Johnson

INTERTECH SCIENCE PARK WELCOMES ENTERTAINMENT TENANTS

llustrating the crossover between film, music and other entertainment sectors, four companies are now in close quarters as tenants of InterTech Science Park in Shreveport. A seemingly strange fit for a building built for companies invested in the life sciences industry, the pristine InterTech facility has proved the perfect choice for entertainment companies as interested in aesthetics as functionality. The four neighbors on the property include William Joyce’s animation company, Moonbot Studios, which was formed in conjunction with Alyssa Kantrow and Lampton Enochs, whose company Louisiana Production Consultants is also located at InterTech. Cast & Crew On Set, a film industry equipment services company, is also on site, along with CRM Studios Louisiana, a broadcast production company run by Greg Lawrence. A fifth tenant is currently moving in. Shreveport musicians Brian and Brady Blade will be opening their full-service music production studio, Blade Studios, at InterTech. The state of the art recording studio will occupy the remaining seven thousand square feet of first floor space, set to open its doors in the first quarter of 2011. “Moonbot and Blade Studios exemplify the state’s entertainment industry future, developing businesses from homegrown talent by taking advantage of the state’s assets and incentives,” said Sherri McConnell, executive director of the Louisiana Office of Entertainment Industry Development. “This investment by the InterTech Science Park and private individuals will help expand Louisiana’s competitive position across the entertainment spectrum.” S

Arlena Acree and Diego Martinez

MORE SCENE EXTRAS 32 | November/December 2010

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SCENE | JESSICA LANGE HONORED BY THE OGDEN MUSEUM OF SOUTHERN ART

n October 9th, the “O What A Night Gala” benefit was held at the center of New Orleans’ dynamic fall arts season, with the Ogden Museum giving the Opus Award to actress, artist and collector Jessica Lange. Founded in 2007, the Opus Award is given each year to a member of the arts community whose life’s work constitutes a major contribution to the cultural landscape of the South. Jessica Lange’s acting career has spanned for more than thirty years, nominated for six Academy Awards and winning two, nominated for ten Golden Globes and winning four, including one for her portrayal of Blanche DuBois in the TV version of A Streetcar Named Desire. As an accomplished photographer, Lange had an exhibition of her own photographs at The Gallery for Fine Photography in New Orleans in October 2009. Lange is also an art collector, and her love for New Orleans and the Deep South led her to acquiring a major collection of photographs by Walker Evans, Doris Ulmann, Danny Lyon and others. Currently on view at the Ogden Museum is her collection of photographs of New Orleans and Louisiana by Walker Evans. Also receiving an award that evening was T. G. Solomon, honored with the Ogden Lifetime Achievement Award. The inaugural year of the award, it will be given every three years to a New Orleanian who has had a major contribution to the arts community. Solomon’s advancement of the film industry has provided a platform for the world’s best actors, directors and producers to practice their trade and, in doing so, provided countless hours of pleasure and entertainment for millions of people along the Gulf Coast. Both awards are unique designs by New Orleans designer and jeweler Mignon Faget. S

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photos by Cheryl Gerber/courtesy of the Ogden Museum of Southern Art

Rita Benson LeBlanc and Nicholas Lowry Jessica Lange

Moon Landrieu, Doris Solomon & T.G.Solomon

Harry Shearer

www.scenelouisiana.com | 35

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MUSIC |

MUSE I

n Greek mythology, the Muses inspired mortals to create art and literature. Muse is then aptly named for above all else, like the gods, they inspire. Difficult to summarily define, the sound of Muse rocks like heavy metal with a fullness reminiscent of a symphonic orchestra and electronica you might hear at a rave. That’s what makes Muse great and, in a market saturated with derivatives, an original. After years of struggling through the indie Scene in London and Manchester growing their flock of followers, Madonna signed them to her label, Maverick Records. Most would find it hard to believe that in the early nineties, record labels across the pond wanted nothing to do with the band, thinking they sounded too much like fellow Brit rockers, Radiohead. Recently I heard a first-time listener describe Muse as a cross between U2, Guns N’ Roses and “something you’d hear in Phantom of the Opera.” Any Muse fan fortunate enough to see them live will tell you: it’s an intense experience bordering on the religious. It’s chaotic in “Map of the Problematique” and hand-clap heavy in “Supermassive Black Hole.” It’s loud like “Time is Running Out” and powerful like “Starlight.” Ask anyone who’s been. The Muse experience differs from anything you’ve seen before. And I dare you to not clap along with front man Matthew Bellamy during the opening beats of “Starlight.” Muse spent last year opening for Bono and the boys from Dublin on the U2 360 tour, widely regarded as one of the best, and most expensive, concert experiences in recent memory. This year, they’re one of the headlining acts at the Voodoo Music Experience in New Orleans. S

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by David Draper

MUSIC |

FLORENCE THE MACHINE by Kevin Barraco

Florence Welch

ike many, my first introduction to Florence + the Machine came on a Tuesday night in October last year when the band performed on Late Night with David Letterman. The beautiful, melodic arcs of lead singer Florence Welch’s voice stayed with me and I quickly became a fan. My intuition about buzzworthy bands rarely disappoints me and I knew America would grab hold of this British band fast. Florence Welch usually surrounds herself with a single guitar player, harpists and drummer to make up the machine. Their debut single, “Kiss with a Fist,” brought much attention to the band in 2008, but it wasn’t until the release of their full-length album Lungs in 2009 that carried them to stardom with the hit, “Dog Days Are Over.” After their live performance at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards, their album rose to number two on the iTunes album chart and “Dog Days Are Over” rose to number nine on the iTunes singles chart. In addition Florence + the Machine was the number one search on Google, and Twitterverse recorded 1.7 thousand tweets per minute for the group. It was obvious that Florence + the Machine had arrived. Scene Magazine spoke with Florence in early October as she prepared to make her way to perform at the Voodoo Music Experience

40 | November/December 2010

in New Orleans. At the time of our conversation, she was entering the studio gates of Warner Bros in Burbank, California and kept telling me what she was seeing, showing off her excitement about getting a “behind the scenes” tour of the studio lot. In between giddy outbursts, she told me how lucky she feels to have her music embraced by fans. Florence revealed that when recording “Dog Days Are Over,” she discovered her sound and that one song prepared her for the rest of the album. “The song is an ambiguous celebration in a destructive way, that’s my honest interpretation.” “It’s a great opportunity to be recognized and it feels a bit unexpected,” added Florence. “More people are seeing our live shows and understanding our music.” The band is currently in and out of the recording studio completing their second album, and she admitted that she is incorporating some of her love for hip-hop into some new tracks. As Florence is a fan of Lil Wayne, I was left wondering if he will join the Machine for a performance or two. The Brit pop sound of Florence + the Machine has certainly hit the mainstream. With “Heavy in Your Arms” featured in The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, the band’s haunting sounds from the Voodoo Stage are audible all the way to the set of Breaking Dawn in Baton Rouge. S

THE FASHION SCENE

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ACCESSORIES

ARE A GIRLâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S

Model: Emily McAveeney Photographer: Jason Kruppa Make-up: Maria Broussard of KINETIX spa & salon Hair: John Delgadillo Stylist: John Delgadillo

accessories by kiki

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THE FASHION SCENE

Lt beige knit dress w/ rhinestones and chain applications: Merci Beautcoup $54 Earring and necklace set: Merci Beaucoup $28 Bracelet: Merci Beaucoup $31

www.scenelouisiana.com | 43

GORGEOU

THE FASHION SCENE

Black tiered crochet dress: nk boutique/ Diane von Furstenberg $465 Hand beaded head band: kiki Baton Rouge $21 Earrings: kiki Baton Rouge Silver glitter clutch: kiki Baton Rouge/ Anya Hindmarch $495

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www.scenelouisiana.com | 45

FASHION |

by Brittney Franklin

or over forty years, Mignon Faget has been creating jewelry inspired by nature and the city she loves, and now her work is being showcased at the Historic New Orleans Collection. “They had never done a show on anyone still alive,” she says with a laugh. “Often it’s someone who was in the world of fashion as art and that’s the way I feel about my work: that it’s art.” It’s been said that almost every New Orleanian woman owns at least one piece by Mignon Faget. Whenever she sees someone wearing one of her designs, Faget says she feels a connection and a desire to speak to them. And don’t think she won’t. Mignon Faget began her life in art as a young girl, designing clothing with the help of her mother. After graduating from the Academy of the Sacred Heart, she attended Newcomb College, where she received a BFA in sculpture with a concentration in metal art. Faget studied under Jules Struppeck, Pat Trivigno, Alfred Moir, John Canaday, James Steg and Sarah “Sadie” Irvine. Faget attributes her unique artistic voice to training she received in a “design in nature” course taught by art historian Robin Fields. Starting with a subject from nature, Fields’ students would create a representational drawing, then reducing it to something abstract. It’s a design technique Faget continues to use today. “I think his influence shows very much in [my] early collections,” she says. “They go back to nature regularly.” The fleur-de-lis has been a staple in Mignon Faget’s designs, a theme she’s reinvented numerous times. After Hurricane Katrina, she used the design to help contribute to the rebirth of New Orleans by creating inexpensive pieces to sell, donating the money to the Louisiana Cultural Economy Foundation. Mignon Faget’s gallery was one of the first businesses to reopen. Victims of Katrina would come to the shop to purchase gifts for people who had housed or helped them. “They would buy a dozen, so that was my way of getting help and giving back,” Fagets says. “I’ve never enjoyed anything more.” Proceeds from the sales helped New Orleans cultural non-profits such as the Ogden Museum of Southern Art and the art gallery at Newcomb College. Louisiana is “a rich environment for source material,” according to Faget, and her work betrays a love of local architecture, food, foliage, wildlife and history. In the wake of the recent oil spill disaster, she created a line “in the tradition of mourning jewelry” to “mourn the death of the natural resources of the sea and the plant life.” The pieces were based on a design she’d done in conjunction with the opening of the Aquarium of the Americas in 1990. “It’s really a diary,” says Faget of her work. Every 46 | November/December 2010

Mignon Faget

photo by Joséphine Sacabo

collection reflects a point in her life and career. The seventy-six year old Louisiana fashion icon already has ideas for upcoming designs, but says she’s holding back. Instead, Faget has focused on her Archival collection, a revisiting of past seasonal pieces to which the Schema collection was recently added. Faget released her first ready-to-wear line in New Orleans’ Riverbend neighborhood in 1969, and has since expanded her company to include galleries in Metairie and Baton Rouge. “Mignon Faget: A Life in Art and Design” will run at The Historic New Orleans Collection from September 22 to January 2, 2011. For more information, visit www.hnoc.org. S

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IN THE MIX HANDS ON with the new

APPLE TV by Greg Milneck

ike many people, I’m constantly in search of the perfect home media distribution device. Media center computers, DVRs, game consoles, SlingBox and many other devices have connected with my home television, including the original Apple TV. Not one of them has even come close to giving me what I want: access to live and recorded HD television, HD movies, media stored on my network, photographs, videos and online content. So, does the new Apple TV deliver? Nope. But, it’s not all bad. First off, the Apple TV is stunning. Apple has once again shown their incredible attention to even the minutest details. Even the seemingly insignificant, such as the power cord, is extremely well designed. Yes, the power cord. I don’t know what material it’s made out of, but it’s beautiful. The plug itself has a sort of retro feel to it. Most power cords, particularly on cheaper devices, require a separate power supply attached to the chord itself. Apple managed to create this device with the power supply built into the unit. Which is a good thing, because the power supply would have probably been larger than the device itself. Apart from the power chord, the diminutive size of the box is unbelievable. You’ve probably read other reviews that made special note of the size. But I promise you, it’s smaller than you think it is. And, like most Apple products, it too is a brilliant piece of industrial design. Though I can’t figure out why they made it so small. More on that later. All of this is to say that the Apple TV is inexpensive, not cheap. My biggest disappointment with the hardware is the remote. If you own an iPhone or iPad, just go ahead and toss the remote. It’s not that it is cheaply constructed. In fact, it’s quite nice. But it’s useless when navigating the menus, particularly with all the places you have to enter usernames and passwords. Get the free remote app on your iPhone and forget using the remote. Initially, I was really pleased with the device. For $99, it’s a steal. Navigation with the iPhone is simple and straightforward. Within two minutes, I was watching a Netflix movie. Very quickly thereafter, I was streaming content from my computers, browsing YouTube and viewing my Flickr photos. But soon I realized that all of those things I was doing, which were painless, pretty much summed up the entirety of what I can do with the Apple TV. If you can accept its limitations, that’s not a bad thing. Unfortunately, that’s not in me. First, there’s no hard drive. Everything has to stream from an online or network source. This seems to be the wave of the future: preventing media consumers from actually owning anything and only allowing us 50 | November/December 2010

to rent. I like to own. I like to buy a movie and have access to it whenever I want. Sure, you can go to your computer, use iTunes and purchase a movie or TV show. Once downloaded (after forty-five minutes of waiting), you can then go to your Apple TV, access your computer and stream directly from your hard drive. And here is the dirty little secret of the Apple TV: its seemingly dummyproof ease of use is basically a smokescreen. If you want to do anything outside of its limited confines, you suddenly add a dozen steps and many minutes of time to the process. Second, Apple is severely limited in its partnerships with the Apple TV. In my case, this causes a problem. For instance, my DirectTV package does not include AMC in HD. In the past, I would use my old Apple TV to purchase HD episodes of Mad Men and Rubicon and watch them immediately on my television. The new Apple TV does not include AMC, or many other channels for that matter, so I am forced to go back to my computer and download it, then back to my Apple TV, then…you get the idea. It’s a pain. While I like the look of the Apple TV, it bothers me that the device is so small. Considering it’s a media home device meant to pair up with your television, cable or satellite box and other peripherals, it’s noticeably out of place. I realize that Apple only conforms to the design sense of Steve Jobs, but the context of placement should have been considered here. I realize I may be a bit O.C.D. on this, so maybe it’s just me. Additionally, its small size severely limits the number of audio and video connections available. For instance, with only an optical-out for audio, you’re out of luck if you want to connect to an analog device. One very interesting development with the Apple TV is the promise of AirPlay. According to Apple, future software versions will allow for wireless video and audio sharing between your iPhone, iPad and Apple TV. Right now, I’m using a beta version of the software, which only allows for audio sharing. But it works perfectly. At press time, I could not test video over AirPlay, but it’s intriguing to say the least. Despite the drawbacks, I have to keep reminding myself that it’s only $99. And, truthfully, it is worth every penny. But why limit access? Why limit capability? Aren’t we now in a time, technologically, where companies like Apple should be pushing the envelope, striving to give consumers access to all things digital? I want access to everything digital in my home. I don’t want to have to purchase eight different devices to do eight different things. I like the new Apple TV. I just wish I had the option of buying a more comprehensive device. Apple’s sense of design and ease of navigation would be a great fit. If only they’d take the training wheels off. S

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ON THE SCENE

A NIGHT OF FILM & FASHION AT RUBENSTEINS

photos by Scott Myers

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ON THE SCENE

EIFFEL SOCIETY GRAND OPENING photos by Peter Forest

www.scenelouisiana.com | 55

FRAMES PER SECOND FRAMES PER SECOND

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BY JAMES SHEPPARD | fpscomics@gmail.com

THE UNSCENE Incentive R.O.I. Every economy is cyclical. In the short term, patterns of growth and contraction are evident in every economic sector. But over time, the free market yields expansion every time. Some are scared by rapid growth, their fears undergirded by their lack of control. Rather than recognizing opportunity, they are jealous of others’ gains. They only think of what’s being taken away from them and in doing so, display a mentality definitively smallminded. For if Louisiana has learned one lesson in the year that this column has been written, it is this: growth is not a zero sum game. This boom was built in a recession. While America came to a screeching economic halt, Louisiana’s entertainment industry came barrelling out of a catastrophic disaster like gangbusters. The last five years have been epoch-making, not only for the Pelican State but for Hollywood as a whole. No longer a novelty, Louisiana is considered by nearly every production produced in America. And, to be sure, the money pouring into the state is not limited to Benjamin Franklins. Equity producers invested in films shot in Louisiana span the globe, from France to Japan. While naysayers will vapidly criticize state government for “cutting checks” to foreign companies, they are illinformed. They are missing the initial investment in Louisiana: the money is being spent here first. And we’re not talking a few million dollars. This is a billion dollar industry born as others are crumbling. We’re talking massive expansion. This is an industry keeping Louisiana’s best and brightest from moving to Los Angeles, New York or abroad by bringing the work here. And it does it by bringing the money here. Louisiana’s entertainment incentives are working... ...at a time when a great percentage of Americans are not. - The UnScene Writer

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